Golf Cart Ranger In Review – More Balls Than You Can Shake A Stick At!

The latest pick-up-and play title to come across my iPhone is n-Space’s Golf Cart Ranger. Promising to be “more fun than a bucket of balls” and offering almost 40 levels out of the box, I was definitely intrigued by its simple premise. Read on to see if it scores a hole-in-one, or a double bogey.

In Golf Cart Ranger, you’re tasked with collecting golf balls from a driving range before your cart runs out of gas; all the while avoiding course hazards and flying golf balls. By tapping the arrows on each side of the screen, you control the direction of the cart left or right. Handling of the cart works surprisingly well and the controls are responsive. You can either tap the arrows to slightly move left/right or tap and hold it for a sharp turn. If anything it makes the game a step easier not having to worry about the accelerate and brake buttons.

There are 36 levels split into 2 differently themed areas, with another 18 levels in “Snow Job” – an icy and slippery course available as an in-app purchase. Similar to games like Angry Birds, each level is more or less the same except for slight changes in environment, that if improperly played can have a negative impact on your score. There are 3 different modes of play that change from level to level, which adds to the fun. The overall difficulty level should be moderate for beginners, but even seasoned pros will find themselves challenged to try and shave precious seconds off or gather more balls before they’re running on empty.

Visually the game is in good shape. From the splash screen to the in-game graphics, the colors are vibrant and the golf courses look solid. The devs have also taken the time to integrate GameCenter achievements into the game, with 10 different achievements available and 3 leaderboards to compete on. Another bonus – once you download the DLC you’ll also get an additional 4 achievements and 1 more leaderboard.

With its simple yet addictive gameplay and excellent graphics, I am giving Golf Cart Ranger a solid Kiss. It’s fun, easy to jump right in and the high scores will make you want to go back for more. I am also hopeful that it won’t be too long before we see more courses and levels added, either out of the box or via DLC. Fans of pick-up-and-play games should definitely grab it, especially at its current intro price of $0.99. At the very least, you can check out the free lite version (includes 9 levels) before making the jump.

Note: Golf Cart Ranger is only compatible with later iDevices, so the game won’t run on the iPhone 3G and iPod Touch 2G.